Protecting your kids online with Web Filters

You have kids, you have a computer with an internet connection, the two put together = trouble! I don't mean to understate this point, because when it comes down to it, you, the parents, are the the one that has to take responsibility for your children and what they view. I'm generally pretty harsh on parents that think that nothing can happen on the internet...while the internet feels "safe" because it's in your house, what bad thing could happen? Well, read the newspapers and see what can happen with the "safe" internet. If you're going to have a net connection you need to be responsible and make sure your kids are safe online. So, here are some programs that will help you monitor what your kids are up to:

iProtectyou - This is one of the best programs on the net at the moment to stop your kids from seeing objectionable material and unmonitored chat and email sessions. This program is FREE so download it. This program allows you to control which websites your kids are allowed to visit, which programs can have internet access, blocking email, chat, instant messages that would have objectionable words in it...it will also gather information about what your children are doing online...you can also set up a schedule when your child can be online. I just can't say how great of a program this is and if you're a parent and you want to help your kids be safe, this is the program for you. It is password protected, so as long as your kids don't have the password, they can't change the settings. Really, take responsibility for you children's online life. If I get enough requests I'll write a tutorial for this program that will show you the steps for setting this program up. You can download this program here http://www.softforyou.com/

We-Blocker - This is a very effective web filtering tool that will stop objectionable websites. It has some very nice features including multiple accounts so you can set up different settings for different age groups or different age groups. A very good web filtering tool, I still like iProtectyou a little more because you can limit access to certain programs and chatrooms, IM's, and other venues should be restricted...so this is good if you just want to filter web pages. You can download this program at http://www.we-blocker.com/index.php

AOL and MSN, and many other Internet service providers have some form of internet blocking and restricted zones you can set so you can limit the access of your children on the net. It will limit emails, IM's and things like that...but I think parents are too often drawn into a false sense of security with these settings...if you minimize AOL and open a browser like Mozilla the filters will be gone, and you know those kids will find ways around simple defenses.

In closing, the best way to make sure you kids are safe online is to surf with them...kids, especially young kids, shouldn't be left on the computer without parental supervision. If however you can't be with your kids while they surf, please download iProtectyou and make sure you set it up to block areas that would be dangerous for them. No matter how many laws the government passes to protect children, it will always be up to you, the parent to proactively protect your children.